"knowledge is not what gets us what we want in life—it is putting that knowledge into action." p. 18 "I was living a life without focus, without knowing what I wanted to do, be, or have in life. I walked through life not connecting my choices to my outcomes." p. 23 "Knowing exactly what you want in life is the first principle of wealth attraction. You must decide on specific goals that you want to achieve and be very clear about those goals and their importance in your life. The key is to keep that goal in the forefront of your mind and be open to adjusting it as new opportunities arise." p. 27 "successful leaders share a trait with some of the wealthiest people in the world: writing down their goals. The research supports it, the masters preach it, and my own experience has proven it to me. Writing down goals is nonnegotiable. Each year I write down 101 goals that I will achieve in the next twelve months. It works! I make it a big part of running my companies." p. 27 "1. Write down all the things you don’t want in life. 2. Once you have nothing left to write, draw a line after the last thing you don’t want in life. 3. Then, on a new sheet of paper, write the opposite of what you just wrote. For example, if you wrote, “I don’t want to be poor,” then on your new sheet of paper write, “I want to be rich.” If you wrote, “I don’t want to be alone,” then write the opposite, “I want to be in a relationship.” And so on: I don’t want to be sick—I want to be healthy. I don’t want to be stuck here forever—I want to travel and see new things. 4. Once you have completed your opposite list, make a third list: “What can I start doing today?” p. 28 "When you set a new goal, always ask and answer these three questions: How will that item or experience look in detail when I receive it? How long do I give myself until I reach it? How will I feel and act when I achieve it?" p. 31 "Taking personal responsibility means not blaming others for your unhappiness. It means figuring out ways you can be happy despite others’ (negative) behaviors and despite external circumstances." p. 39 "It is useful to think of the ability to control your emotional response to a specific event as a muscle. Just as your biceps become stronger only when you exercise them, if you allow relatively minor incidents—like an encounter with a rude waitress—to spoil your mood, how can you expect to maintain your happiness when a more extreme event—like a weeklong visit from an unpleasant relative—happens?" p. 40 "While this may seem silly or a waste of time to you, consider that if you can control your mind, you can control your life. Your mind is mostly a subconscious machine when you consider all of the things it has you do without conscious thought, like breathing. Focusing forces the mind to reprogram itself." p. 46-47
"Be alone, that is the secret of invention; be alone, that is when ideas are born." —Nikola Tesla (p. 50)
"Crisis enters our life because we lose personal focus and inner confidence." p. 52-53
"I was surprised to discover that the same substance that gets people hooked on gambling, nicotine, and alcohol essentially creates an addiction to progress." p. 60
"We’ve all heard about the “runner’s high,” the result of endorphin levels rising. Helper’s high occurs when people perform good deeds for other people. In other words, it’s a classic example of nature’s built-in reward system for those who help others. After spending so many years finding my “high” in unhealthy ways, I was fascinated by this concept." p. 67
"The first step to switching on your gratitude mindset is to start internally and feel gratitude for yourself, your gifts, and what you have accomplished. Being grateful internally is very challenging because it can often make us feel selfish or egotistical. It is an odd feeling to appreciate yourself and your gifts." p. 74
"The mind is its own place, and in itself can make a heaven of hell, a hell of heaven." —John Milton (p. 78)
"Make [your idea] so grand that, when you describe it, people get uncomfortable." p. 79
"For an idea to grow big and expand, you must accept the harsh realities of life and respond by adjusting where needed but never shrinking. To think big is to do big." p. 87
"By answering these questions honestly, you can work out what to do with the rest of your life: What subject could you read five hundred books on without getting bored? What could you do for five years straight without getting paid? What would you spend your time doing if you had the financial freedom to do anything? . . . You don’t have to be great at something to be passionate about it. If you can’t imagine not doing something, it’s a passion." p. 90
"If I were to share my goals with everyone, most would say that I will never be able to do that, or have that, or be that person who has that achievement in life. That’s the type of negativity I don’t need in my life, especially when a new inspired idea comes to me. My rule of thumb when it comes to my personal goals is that I only share them with people who can help me achieve them. Many times, that includes not sharing my goals with my family. While I love my family, and I know they will always support me in whatever I put my mind to, I don’t need them to doubt me for one second. Therefore, I keep my goals close to my heart, and I never let anybody rain on my parade. I want to keep the energy up and growing when it comes to my goals, and that usually means keeping them to myself." p. 98-99
"Once you fill your mind with the details of what you want to achieve and then take action to do just that, you’ll be able to prove your doubters wrong. Work with me as we prove them all wrong. There is nothing more satisfying. Use any form of outside negativity from others as fuel for the fire that burns inside you; passion propels you toward success. You can do it, no matter how big your goal is, no matter how challenging, regardless of what other people tell you. Deep down inside, believe you will succeed." p. 99
"Principle 11: Wake up expecting problems." p. 100
"Remember, you can be wealthy just because of what you have learned from the life experiences you’ve overcome and conquered. You are capable of doing anything, of triumphing over any problem and gaining every bit of knowledge you need to succeed and see your goals accomplished." p. 108
"When I started to push myself farther and farther to achieve the 101 goals I set for myself each year, I researched the habits of other highly successful people. How did they accomplish so much in the same twenty-four-hour period I had to accomplish things? How did they increase their output of great ideas? As with anything, study habits and you will uncover the formula for success." p. 117
"If a business is always looking to maximize profit, it focuses on cutting expenses whenever possible—including employees’ wages. The truth is that most companies pay employees as little as they can get away with. That’s the perfect way to encourage workers who will, in turn, provide as little effort as they can get away with. This is a backward way of thinking about compensation. A profit-first mentality of paying the lowest-possible wages ultimately cripples employee performance and engagement and damages your bottom line." p. 123
"Whatever you want to be, find a person who already has achieved it, and just do it." p. 133
"A mentor has also “been there, done that, and survived it!” The point of having a mentor is so that you can learn from their mistakes and their innovations. A mentor gets you to your goal faster through previous knowledge." p. 135
"Our modern world has fallen into a deep lie: most people believe that once we finish school, we stop learning, or that there is no more to discover in our fields, and we don’t need to continue developing ourselves. We only start learning about ourselves and our unlimited human potential after we have graduated." p. 136-37
"Great minds discuss ideas; average minds discuss events; small minds discuss people." —Eleanor Roosevelt (p. 142)
"Negative people with an aversion to learning need to be cut from your team immediately." p. 146
"One of the most difficult things to do is separate yourself from bad conversations. However, when you do it, your life transforms overnight." p. 146
"If I ever end up in a negative conversation somewhere in public, I always make sure to excuse myself and pretend that I have to make an urgent phone call or go to the restroom. I refuse to get dragged down by negative energy—that leads to more problems in life and business. The same thing is true in business." p.147
"Put distance between you and any negative people as quickly as possible. You always become the sum total of the people around you." p. 149
"You can get help from teachers, but you are going to have to learn a lot by yourself, sitting alone in a room." —Dr. Seuss
"Forget about the usual rat race, the same routines and habits of everyday life, and change your thinking. Get out and enjoy life! The world is yours to see and conquer. We are meant to see the magnificent wonders of this amazing heaven on earth." p. 163
To read:
The Success Principles, by Jack Canfield
Earn What You’re Really Worth, Eat That Frog!, by Brian Tracy
The Psychology of Achievement, by Brian Tracy
